A Nigerian’s Experience As Volunteer in The United States
As a result of that renewed commitment to public service, Obama pledged to make service a cause for his presidency through the “Serve America Act”. From April 12 – 30, 2010, the US. State Department and the Meridian International Centre in Washington D.C., brought together up to 100 non-governmental organizations’ leaders, civic and community activists, […]
As a result of that renewed commitment to public service, Obama pledged to make service a cause for his presidency through the “Serve America Act”. From April 12 – 30, 2010, the US. State Department and the Meridian International Centre in Washington D.C., brought together up to 100 non-governmental organizations’ leaders, civic and community activists, government officials, educators and journalists from 93 countries, to examine volunteerism and community service in the United States. There can be no better avenue to achieve this objective than through the International Visitor Leadership Program tagged “Volunteerism: United We Stand.”
We arrived Washington D.C. just when the cherry blossom festival was about ending. During the city tour conducted by veteran, Philip Brown, the decor of the cherry trees were visible right from the Pantormic River; the fragrance was inviting. I noted with great interest that people in the capital city see it as an obligation to nurture and save the trees because they are invaluable assets to them. The history of the cheery trees was itself a symbol of community service and culture of giving.
After series of meetings, interactive sessions, workshops, couple of hands-on volunteer activities and home hospitalities with American families across the United States, I realized that the culture of giving in the United States is an institutionalized phenomenon, from cradle to the grave. I came to the conclusion that the American people have an unbeatable charity record in the world. According to a survey, over 300 billion dollars was given away by Americans to charitable causes in 2009. These charities were not given away by wealthy people like Bill Gates or Winfrey Oprah or their likes; it was given, and is still being given, by the poor American people. Poor people in the U.S. give much higher percentage in terms of materials and labor to charity than the rich, precisely because they are close to the problem.
The first thing I did when I stepped into my room at the Marriot Hotel in Washington DC was to turn on the TV, and I saw a program on the Lemonade Day, in which a nine- year old girl was shown making lemonade on the street. The day is specifically designed to introduce kids to entrepreneurship. The little girl was asked what she was going to do with the money from the sale of the lemonade. I was amazed by the kid’s reply, “I will give some part of the money to my school and give the rest to my mum.” Where did this kid get this idea from, I asked myself. The answer came to me later in the course of the program.
The week-long Washington program was very tight, with the whole group simultaneously involved in workshops on volunteerism, NGO management, volunteer recruitment, etc. During a presentation on History and State of Service in the U.S., founder and CEO of the organization, “Be the Change”, Mr Alan Khazei, presented a challenge to the group to work together on the idea of creating an international network that will spread the message of volunteerism globally, while supporting each other worldwide. This challenge was accepted, and a new global organization was established called the International Volunteer Service Network, with the logo VOLiNTEER; each participant an ambassador of his country.
On the last day in Washington, the group participated in volunteer activities at different places according to city groups. My city group, Indianapolis Group (Blue Group) served at the Washington D.C. Cosmopolitan Community Church that promotes gay, lesbian, bisexual and transgender equality. Together with students from George Washington University, we packaged the monthly grocery bags for distribution to seniors in the neighbourhoods.The church, known as We Are Family, is very well known for assisting seniors with questions on their medicare, organizing to protect their homes amidst upscale development and companionship in their homes. It was amazing, as I told a reporter from the Examiner newspaper in San Francisco during an interview, that was published, how such a group that could be termed as outcasts in my country, could engage in such a selfless service to the community. By the end of our stay in Washington D.C., we were equipped with tools and concepts on volunteerism and social entrepreneurship, as well as hands- on in practical volunteerism.
The group of 25 to Indiana, Indianapolis, had first hand information on the culture and environment of the city before getting down to real business. We had the opportunity to observe and interact with volunteers engaged in the preservation of the rich cultural history of the Conner Prairie Interactive History Park.
We were introduced to the living history of the museum that preserves the William Conner home, which is listed on the National Register of Historic Places that creates part of life in Indianapolis in the 19th century on the White River. My host during the home hospitality, the Johnsons, were a nice family. I was elated when I discovered that Mr. Patrick Johnson could speak a little Hausa. He was on volunteer mission to Zinder, Niger, and had just moved into Indiana six months back with his ever smiling wife and two cats bought from Dubai.
The workshop at the International Centre of Indianapolis, University International Centre on Philanthropy, broadened my knowledge of service and social entrepreneurship acquired in Washington D.C. The discussion which involved managers of volunteer groups, university lecturers and students, centred on “Functional Approach to Volunteers’ Motivations” and how volunteerism impact on the immediate environment. Every student of the university was expected to put on some specific hours of voluntary service as demanded by the school curriculum.
Practical of the discussions were clearly visible when we visited selected volunteer centres such as Second Helpings, Keep Indianapolis Beautiful and many others, for updates and assessment of the workings of volunteer organizations in Indianapolis. The peak of these visits was the visit to Eli Lilly, a major pharmaceutical company in Indianapolis. We were introduced to practical concepts of Corporate Social Responsibility (CSR). President of the company, Mr. Robert Smith, spoke on Global CSR demonstrated by the company through its partners in areas such as education, health, high tech, etc and how it impacted positively on the society.
We arrived Jackson, Mississippi, just when the metrological centre was issuing warning on the anticipated tornadoes. Heavens be thanked, the city program was less strenuous. For this city program, I was paired with Mr Arpan Shrestha, a journalist from Nepal under the guide of Mr. Ryan Moore. The Madison High School in Jackson was our first point of contact. As journalists, we had intense session with students of the communication department. The quality of page design of the newsletter and year book the students publish can be compared with some national dailies in Nigeria.
At that lower class in the high school, the students are expert web page designers and managers. I watched with rapt attention when a multimedia teacher played to me a video advertisement produced by a pupil in the class. We were briefed on how service is introduced to the students through the school. These reporters/editors volunteer their time and expertise to produce the newsletter; there are also fee-paying students who sponsor its publication. One ways to get money for the production of the newsletter and year book was for the school authority to allow students wear pyjamas to school and pay certain fees for that.
We also had the opportunity of meeting the Senator Frazier representing Jackson County and the Mayor at the Legislature in Jackson. Senator Frazier is one man in love with Africa; his office was full of African souvenirs. I was surprised to see souvenirs from Kano and Nasarawa state legislatures in Nigeria, signed by the states’ respective speakers. Mr. Frazier told me he was in Nigeria during late Abacha regime, and even slept in Kaduna Government House. He also informed me he met with the governor of my state, Namadi Sambo, not long ago, now the Vice President of Nigeria. He introduced us to the workings of the legislature in Jackson.
We also visited selected volunteer centres, and was finally assigned to participate in a volunteer activity at the thrift store of the Salvation Army in Jackson. The Salvation Army, according to classified report, was among the top 10 influential volunteer groups in the United States. It played significant role during hurricane Katrina and the subsequent tornadoes in some counties in Jackson, Mississippi. We hurried the program before the tornadoes. Evening of the same day, we went for home hospitality with the Ruben and Hattie family at 5150 Inn wood Drive.
The whole group of participants regrouped in San Francisco on the final week. We were engaged in Interfaith Focus, a panel discussion on the power of faith-based service with representatives from Interfaith Center at the Presidio, Catholic Charities, the Jewish Vocational Service, the Islamic Networks Group, Glide Memorial United Methodist Church and the Congregation of Emanu-El. For the first time, I appreciated the power of social media networking in a technology session by representatives from Volunteer Match, The Extraordinaire, Facebook and Google. We were honored to be addressed by California’s Secretary of Service and Volunteering, Hon. Karen Baker, at the end of a conference on Corporate Social Responsibility Conference sponsored by VISA Inc. with representatives from VISA, Oracle, IBM, PG&E, Intel, Institute for Social Entrepreneurs, Social Imprints, Room to Read, and Taproot Foundation. Highlights of the program in San Francisco was Reception with California First Lady, wife of the Governor of California, Hon. Maria Shriver, at Glide Memorial Church and another one reception at the City Hall with Mayor, Galvin Newsom. We took time off the tight schedule to cheer with the crowd in support of the Giants during a baseball game, courtesy of VISA.
For the second time, I experienced working side by side with American Volunteer groups at the Crissy Field and the Presidio National Park sponsored by Oracle. I had interesting discussions on the state of volunteerism and American family life with a volunteer while plucking weeds in the field. The little time we had during the volunteer activity enabled me to discuss more with different people about their culture and ways of life than the presentations we had and people I talked with on the streets in San Francisco. The field was dead quiet and sometimes, you find yourself alone with a fellow volunteer. That allowed for one on one open discussions on issues that came to mind. I loved that.
The last public event was a grand reception sponsored by the Institute of International Education (IIE), West Coast Center. It was a social event for networking, reflection and appreciation of events in the last three weeks. Karin Eisele, Executive Director, IIE West Coast Center, Katka Letzing, Director IVLP, West Coast Center and Alma Candelaria, Director IVLP at the State Department, addressed the participants. At the reception, participants presented the website of the global volunteer network volunteers (www.volinteer.net) with the assistance of the State Department and the Meridian Institute. The network, according to our resolution in the letter signed by all the participants to the office of the U.S. Secretary of State Hilary Clinton, is to serve as a forum or monitor for the participants’ efforts in propagating volunteerism in their region in order to foster unity.
My greatest challenge throughout the program, especially in San Francisco, was the cold weather. I agree with Mark Twain’s comment on the sharp weather in San Francisco: “The coldest winter I ever spent was a summer in San Francisco.” Despite all odds about the weather, the tight itinerary kept us warm, and “I left my heart with San Francisco.” The three-week program broadened my horizon and world view.
More specifically, it has introduced me to the culture of giving in the United States and the country’s constitutional democracy. I came to the conclusion that the American people excel among its peers by this singular action- giving back to the community. This concept of service or volunteerism has been so institutionalized that it has become a way of life. This also has given power to the people and cultivates the spirit of nationalism in the citizens.
Americans value service, no matter how little. According to estimates of the three-week program, the participants collectively performed 15 to 20 hours of volunteer service, up to 2,000 hours of volunteer service travel in over 50 cities across the United States. This I learnt, and hope to apply back home in whatever way I can.
Usman writes from Kaduna